Choosing Your Child’s Orthodontist

As a parent of a guardian, we make some of the most significant decisions for our children. We choose where they will go to school, which decides their friend groups and how they learn. 

We help them to choose extracurricular activities that give them additional skills that may or may not impact their future. 

We also choose their medical and dental care, including orthodontists, specialists, and more. 

Dental care is one of the most important decisions that you can make. Ensuring that your children have healthy teeth and gums is something parents and guardians need support with. 

Healthy teeth are important. Tooth decay causes bacteria and a bad smell in the mouth, tooth pain in children is often preventable, gum disease and tooth problems can impact other areas of our health. 

Photo by Diana Polekhina on Unsplash

So how can you choose your child’s orthodontist?

Payment options

Orthodontist care can be expensive, depending on the treatment your child is having. It is important that you understand the different payment methods and how the costing breakdowns with your insurances. 

Look for multiple payment options so that if you need to spread the cost, it is possible to do that. 

Reviews

Spend some time researching orthodontists in the area. Thankfully, living in the time of the internet, it is easy to find reviews. 

There will be many good reviews on their own website and their own social media. 

However, take a little time to dig deeper. If there are any negative experiences, you can speak to the orthodontist about this – if you so choose. 

These can give you an insight into what you can expect from them. 

Qualifications

You can check out your orthodontist qualification. Look for any qualifications that will mean that they have extra training. 

Many orthodontists practice general dentistry before moving to a specialism. 

You can also ask what evert qualifications that they have, they will be happy to explain these to you and what they mean. 

Meeting

You can usually request the first meeting to see if your children like the orthodontist. This will allow your children to get an understanding of what an orthodontist will do and how they can help. 

Children can be worried about going to the dentists, so it is important that you allow them to feel comfortable. 

An orthodontist will be able to welcome them, relax them, and get everything that needs to be done-done. 

They will use positive language, and your child will usually be smiling and responsive. 

This meeting can be significant. 

An orthodontist can make a massive difference to your children’s oral health. 

Once they are happy to have their teeth checked out, it is easier to have braces fitted, fillings, and other dentist work completed when the child is relaxed and comfortable. 

Choosing doctors, dentists, orthodontists, and other health care professionals for your child is a big deal. 

Getting it right can take a little bit of time. – and it is always worth taking your time to research and arrange the first meeting.